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May 23, 2013 6:13pm EDT

(Reuters) - California unveiled prices on Thursday that consumers will pay for a selection of health plans offered through the state under the Affordable Care Act, providing a glimpse into how health care reform may look as it is rolled out across the nation.
Under the federal health care reform law, Californians who do not get or cannot afford health insurance through their jobs can buy coverage through an exchange, at a group rate negotiated by state regulators.
The cost to a 40-year-old who needs coverage would vary from about $40 to $300 per month for a mid-level plan, depending on the person's income. Some young adults, who are less expensive to cover, could pay nothing, depending on how much they earn.
The prices in California, along with those announced in Washington, Vermont and other states, show that premiums under Obamacare can be more affordable than had previously been thought. Consumer advocates welcomed the new exchange.
"It's a revolutionary improvement to move from a broken market where people are charged by how sick they are, to a competitive market where people pay what they can afford, based on a percentage of their income, on a sliding scale," said Anthony Wright, executive director of advocacy group Health Access.

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There’s no positive side to developing skin cancer, but the latest research ties certain forms of the disease to a reduced risk of dementia.

Researchers from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the Bronx, New York found that people who have skin cancer may be less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease.

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“Rock Hard” and similar so-called “natural” supplements for men often contain potentially dangerous drugs — some of which have never been tested on animals, let alone humans.

In an editorial published in JAMA Internal Medicine, Pieter Cohen, assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and a colleague collected some of the lesser known facts about an industry that produces millions of pills — and likely generates tens of millions, if not billions of dollars in profits— but is almost entirely free of government oversight.

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Native Americans are entitled to free and subsidized medical care at some federally-funded health clinics, but 'Obamacare' will soon force many of them to buy insurance or else face hefty fines if they are not “Indian enough”.

“A lot of folks are going to get stuck with the bill,” Jay Stiener of the National Council of Urban Indian Health told the Associated Press.

Members of federally-recognized American Indian tribes have received government-funded health services since 1787. Throughout the US, there are 33 hospitals and 59 health centers that provide services including prenatal care, baby well-checks, dentistry and eye glasses to Native Americans.

The US government has treaty obligations to care for the well-being of Native Americans, but may soon abandon many of its legal responsibilities. President Obama’s health care reform will force thousands of Native Americans to purchase their own health insurance or pay a minimum fine of $695 to the Internal Revenue Service. Indian health advocacy groups estimate up to 480,000 people will be affected, AP reports.

“I’m no less Indian than I was yesterday, and just because the definition of who is Indian got changed in the law doesn’t mean that it’s fair for people to be penalized,” Liz DeRouen, a Native American who usually receives healthcare at a government-funded clinic in North Carolina, told AP. “If I suddenly have to pay for my own health insurance to avoid the fine, I won’t be able to afford it.”

DeRouen is a former tribal administrator for the Dry Creek Rancheria Band of Pomo Indians, but she lost her membership due to an argument with other members. But even though she lost documentation as a tribe member, she is still genetically considered a Native American.

The Obama administration currently has no solution to the hardships the Affordable Care Act will inflict upon the Native American population, but the IRS and the US Treasury have jointly scheduled a public hearing forMay 29to discuss establishment of who qualifies for the exemption from the insurance coverage requirement.

Nearly 30 percent of all Native Americans live below the poverty line, and forcing them to pay fines or purchase insurance would likely just increase this number.

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Hospitals across the nation -- even those located just miles apart -- charge wildly different rates for the same medical procedure. A data set released for the first time by the Department of Health and Human Services illustrates just how dramatic the price gaps can be.

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Within days, the physician began talking about the possibility of heart surgery for Sammy. Anna Nikolayev said she had grown increasingly concerned about the care Sammy was receiving and decided to take him to Kaiser Permanente for a second opinion. The family admits they didn’t get a discharge before removing their son. The doctor at Kaiser Permanente told them Sammy didn’t need antibiotics.
While the family was still at Kaiser Permanente, police officers showed up. They told the Nikolayevs that the people at “Sutter was telling them so much bad stuff that they thought that this baby is dying on our arms,’” Anna Nikolayev said.
The Kaiser Permanente doctor told police and the Nikolayevs that Sammy could go home and there was no concern for his safety in their care. But police arrived at the Nicolayevs’ home a couple of days later with a CPS worker, pushed Alex Nikolayev against the house, threw him to the ground and took his house keys. Police then took Sammy from Anna Nikolayev’s arms, telling her: “I’m going to grab your baby, and don’t resist, and don’t fight me, OK?”
While Sammy was in CPS custody and in the hospital, his parents could see him only for short periods of time but had no control over his care.
After Monday’s hearing the Sacramento County judge ordered Sammy be transferred to Stanford hospital. The Nikolayevs cannot remove him without a “proper discharge” and must allow a county government functionary to make regular house visits — to ensure the family is reminded who really owns their child — once Sammy goes home.

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Mapping out how an Alzheimer’s gene works could lead to new treatments.

So far, nearly two dozen genes scattered across four chromosomes have been linked to an increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease. But identifying such genetic risk factors doesn’t mean that researchers fully understand how they contribute to the cognitive decline and dementia symptoms related to the condition. And that understanding is often crucial to turning genetic information into effective treatments

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In the study published in Diabetologia, researchers studied diet and drinking habits of about 28,500 people from Britain, Germany, Denmark, Italy, Spain, Sweden, France, Italy, and the Netherlands over a period of 15 years.

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Left) The genetically modified viral protein; the inserted peptides are marked with a blue arrow. (Middle) The viral particle. The blue areas represented the inserted peptides. (Right) The viral particle, with the grey shell representing a layer of calcium phosphate. Credit: R. Tang et al., PNAS.

Millions of deaths happen each year from vaccine-preventable diseases because vaccines break down from heat and developing countries often lack ways to properly refrigerate them. Now researchers suggest eggshell-like coatings can make vaccines more thermally stable.

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Congressional leaders in both parties are engaged in high-level, confidential talks about exempting lawmakers and Capitol Hill aides from the insurance exchanges they are mandated to join as part of President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul, sources in both parties said.
The talks — which involve Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), the Obama administration and other top lawmakers — are extraordinarily sensitive, with both sides acutely aware of the potential for political fallout from giving carve-outs from the hugely controversial law to 535 lawmakers and thousands of their aides. Discussions have stretched out for months, sources said.

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